Fort Drum Soldiers Ready For New Role In Afghanistan

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It was family affair on Fort Drum Friday as husbands, wives and children watched their soldiers take part in a deployment ceremony.

The 3-10 General Support Aviation Battalion is preparing to head to Afghanistan.

Medics and pilots cased their battalion flag to get ready for a new role.

"Moving away from combat direct action and moving more towards the command and assist support role for the Afghan army," said Major Christopher Logan of the 3-10 General Support Aviation Battalion.

The soldiers say they're ready for this new mission, especially because their training included a trip to New York City last fall to help out when super storm Sandy slammed into the Northeast.

"We were ready to hoist people if necessary. If they were, say, stuck in a waterlogged environment. We were ready to transfer people to higher level hospitals, just like we do in Afghanistan," said Kenneth Brodhead of the 3-10 General Support Aviation Battalion.

And that Sandy experience helped because for most the company, this is the first overseas deployment.

"A lot of the people we're going with were not with us last time. We've had a pretty significant turnover. I tried to get in the heads, I tried to be empathetic to their process," said Brodhead.

A process Chief Warrant Officer Kenneth Broghead knows well.

But after 23 years in the Army, this ceremony is different for him.

"The most profound difference is this is my last time around. I will be retiring after this trip," said Brodhead.

The deployment is scheduled to last about nine months, meaning the next family affair for the soldiers could be Christmas.